“The British Pound is under pressure ahead of the weekend, holding the title of the worst-performing major G10 currency over the course of the past five trading days. Losses come as the government suffered a symbolic defeat…with pro-Brexit MPs voting against a motion tabled by the government.”

With China’s economy seemingly destined to become the world’s biggest, government missteps look increasingly likely to derail the benefits that would otherwise accrue. “Chief among these self-inflicted wounds would be closing the country to foreign investment, extending state control of the economy and adopting an adversarial relationship with neighboring nations. Ominously, the country seems to doing all of these now, to one extent on another.”

“It’s beginning to look a lot like a government shutdown.” With little to motivate either side to budge, “looking at where things stand ahead of a midnight Friday deadline, all signs are pointing to a partial government shutdown.”

“This week, parliament’s Brexit drama reaches its climax, resulting perhaps in a nation set on a course that no one seems to think is in the national interest, or the collapse of a government, or the fall of a prime minister. Barring a last-minute miracle, Theresa May has lost her final battle. Her big push has failed.”

“Personal income tax accounted for only 8% of total tax revenue in China last year, compared with an average of 24% in the OECD, a group of rich countries.” This is largely because tax dodging is ubiquitous. Estimates suggest “only 2% of Chinese pay any income tax.” Since “China has run a budget deficit in 21 of the past 22 years,” however, the government is now making efforts to raise collection to 15%.

The unfolding truth “appears to be rather different” than “the narrative spun by Nissan and apparently condoned by Japanese authorities.” When the full story about Ghosn is revealed, “it threatens to do at least as much damage to the reputation of the government and industry alliance known as Japan Inc as to the man at the centre of the affair” for it increasingly appears “Nissan’s old guard struck back against their ‘gaijin’ savior.”

“As the British government convulses over Theresa May’s Brexit deal, its negotiating partners in Europe are watching with bewilderment and anxiety, tempered by a flickering hope that the U.K. Parliament might yet decide the pain of Brexit isn’t worth it.”

“A government campaign to slash the influence of China’s celebrities” will also hinder the industry’s ability to compete with Hollywood. “China’s filmmakers, already struggling, will have trouble competing at home, let alone abroad, if they’re forced to use dull, ideologically pure actors and storylines. If China really wants to challenge Hollywood on a global stage, it’s going to have to let its biggest stars shine.”

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s efforts to weed out black money through a ban on high-value currency notes haven’t yielded the desired results.” The Government estimated approximately one-third of the 15.4 trillion rupees in circulation on Nov. 8, 2016 “wouldn’t be returned to banks because it was stashed illegally to avoid tax.” In reality, 99.3% of the invalidated banknotes were returned. Only “107 billion rupees hasn’t yet been received by the Reserve Bank of India after the cash ban.”